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Criteria for Grading English Essays

The main purpose of English composition courses is to help you learn to write expository prose in such a way that a thoughtful, mature, educated reader will pay respectful attention to your ideas. The following criteria may guide your development as a writer. Note that these criteria are concerned only with measurable achievement, not with the amount of effort that goes into writing the essay.

What Characteristics Determine a Grade on an Essay?

A “C” paper demonstrates competent work; it is a success.

The “C” paper shows a clear understanding and proper execution of the assignment, but it may contain clichés, wordiness, and awkward expressions. It lacks originality and specificity. To receive a grade of “C” or better, the paper must contain:

•  An introductory paragraph with a clearly stated thesis, neither too broad nor too narrow.

•  At least three developmental paragraphs, each of which contains a topic sentence related to the thesis, concrete illustrations (examples) that support the controlling idea, and effective transitions.

•  A train of thought that shows unity and coherence.

•  A concluding paragraph.

•  Competence in grammar, punctuation, and spelling. (For example, the essay avoids sentence fragments; unnecessary shifts; subject-verb or pronoun-antecedent disagreements; dangling or split or misplaced modifiers, and fused or run-on sentences).

A “B” or an “A” essay is more than competent work. It shows a superior understanding and execution of the assignment.

The “B” paper demonstrates the competencies of the C essay in form and content. In addition, it has the following characteristics:

•  Shows originality in both style and content.

•  Has good organization, mature sentence structure, and vivid, abundant details. All generalities (opinions) are supported.

•  Has a well-chosen vocabulary and appropriate choice of words.

•  Has no serious errors in mechanics, grammar, spelling, or punctuation.

The “A” paper

•  Contains original ideas that are exceptionally rich.

•  Has supporting details that are unusually vivid and strikingly appropriate.

•  Shows awareness of the exact meanings of the vocabulary used.

•  Contains sentences that have force, fluency, and elegance. No words are wasted.

•  Shows skill in using coordination, subordination, and parallelism.

•  Has no serious mechanical errors in grammar or spelling.

•  Is unique.

A “D” or an “F” essay is less than competent work. It shows a lack of understanding and/or proper execution of the assignment.

The “D” paper has many of the following characteristics :

•  Lacks the qualities of the “C” essay.

•  Has a trite thesis that is too broad or too narrow,

•  Has insufficient evidence for the thesis and the subordinate opinions.

•  Has an unclear organizational pattern and underdeveloped paragraphs.

•  Contains errors in spelling, punctuation , and grammar.

The “F” paper has many of the following characteristics :

•  Does not respond to the assignment.

•  Contains a trivial thesis.

•  May be only a collection of loosely related opinions.

•  Shows a poor grasp of paragraph organization.

•  Has many errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure.